From within the thick grass, strange movements stirred.
Clusters of medicinal herbs suddenly emerged. Some glistened under the starlight, crawling along the ground with their roots tangled like tentacles. Others resembled miniature sunflowers, beaming with a golden glow, oddly menacing. A few looked like common dogtail grass, swaying gently as if taunting the wind.
But these weren't ordinary herbs—they radiated with powerful spiritual energy, clear proof of their high-grade status.
Now, here's something worth noting.
Spiritual herbs having some awareness isn't rare.
But treasured herbs? They don't just have awareness—they've awakened intelligence. They can think, move, and even talk if they want to. They're more like mystical creatures than plants.
"Hah! Looks like luck's finally on my side! So many prized herbs just showed up on their own!" Li Wujie beamed, eyes gleaming with excitement.
Hong Qianye narrowed his eyes, tone sharp, "Odd. These herbs, like us, are all stuck at the ninth layer of Qi Refining."
The Qi Refining Stage had twelve layers. Dropping back to the ninth layer had been humiliating enough, but discovering that even the herbs were at the same level made things weirder.
It wasn't shocking for treasured herbs to cultivate—plenty of them had the talent for it. But herbs naturally lacked combat ability; their edge lay in longevity and evasion. Most just outlived those who wanted to harvest them.
That's why they were usually so hard to catch.
Suddenly, a mental wave rippled from a clover, its message projected clearly into their minds.
"Hey everyone! Looks like Grandpa Medicine Sovereign sent us new toys again! Let's have fun torturing these humans!"
A sunflower twisted its face into a disturbing grin. "I'll strip their clothes and make them run around the valley!"
"Oh please," a dogtail grass snorted, its leaves trembling with anticipation. "Let's flip 'em upside down and make 'em crawl! The humiliation will be glorious!"
Their laughter echoed, carried by the wind.
Ye Junlin's group fell into an awkward silence.
Li Wujie's face twitched. "Wait, what kind of nonsense is this? Since when did herbs get this bold?"
Normally, treasured herbs would bury themselves and tremble at the slightest threat of being picked.
This... was new.
Hong Qianye's lip curled with disdain. "They really don't know their place."
With a flick of his wrist, a purple fireball ignited in his palm and shot forward in a graceful arc.
Whoosh!
The dogtail grass didn't flinch. It casually countered with a razor-sharp wind blade.
Boom!
The impact lit up the clearing with a burst of energy.
"What the hell?" Hong Qianye muttered, genuinely surprised.
He'd only used about forty percent of his power, trying not to turn the herb to ash—still, it should've been more than enough to burn through most Qi Refining cultivators.
But that lowly dogtail grass blocked it without effort?
"Am I seeing things?" Li Wujie blinked, genuinely baffled. "That thing brushed off Senior Brother's attack like it was a breeze."
Something was off. These herbs weren't behaving like herbs at all.
"You filthy woman! Try that again and I'll hang your clothes on a tree and beat you like a drum!" the dogtail grass projected, rage twisting its aura.
Hong Qianye's face twitched in fury.
"I'm a man, damn it…" he muttered under his breath, then growled louder, "You've got a death wish."
He launched another wave of flames, this time bright red and laced with killing intent.
But the dogtail grass retaliated, flailing wildly as it summoned a storm of wind blades that carved chaotic patterns into the ground.
Boom. Boom. Boom!
The air crackled with energy.
It didn't look like a simple Qi Refining skirmish anymore.
Hong Qianye clenched his jaw. This was ridiculous. He was fighting a freaking weed to a stalemate.
And losing ground.
"Help me, you lazy weeds!" the dogtail grass screamed. "This psycho woman's trying to roast me!"
The other herbs, who'd been watching like spectators at a street brawl, finally jumped in.
Swirls of elemental energy surged toward Hong Qianye. His flames, once wild and destructive, began to weaken under the barrage.
"Tch." His face darkened.
With his cultivation suppressed, most of his advanced techniques were off-limits. He was fighting with one hand tied behind his back.
Ye Junlin frowned slightly.
Hong Qianye was arrogant and a bit too dramatic at times, but he wasn't weak—not with that fire root and immortal-grade inheritance. Even at the ninth layer of Qi Refining, he could dominate most Foundation Establishment cultivators.
So why was he getting pushed back by a bunch of grass?
"Senior Brother, I'm coming!" Li Wujie stepped forward, wielding his vegetable knife. He launched a flurry of basic knife techniques from the Chaotic Heaven Blade Style.
They might've been foundational-level moves, but they packed a punch at this cultivation stage.
In no time, the momentum shifted.
With Li Wujie covering his flank, Hong Qianye unleashed a barrage of fire techniques, burning away the herbs' advantage and putting them on the defensive.
"Burn, you annoying weeds!" Hong Qianye snarled.
"Go, Brother Hong! You got this!" Bai Xiaoxi cheered, pumping her tiny fists in the air. "You too, Junior Brother Li!"
Ye Junlin raised an eyebrow, a half-smile tugging at his lips.
"Well, this place really is ruled by medicine. No false advertising here."
He wasn't worried. With just Hong Qianye and Li Wujie, they could easily handle Foundation Establishment cultivators despite the suppression.
But they weren't winning easily.
And that was the weird part.
"Is it because they're weaker now?" he wondered aloud, rubbing his chin.
No. It wasn't that.
It was the herbs.
They weren't just stronger than usual—each one had the kind of potential that could rival top-tier human geniuses. Their casual attacks held absurd amounts of power.
Which was unheard of.
Herbs were supposed to hide and wait—not go toe-to-toe with cultivators like they were born for it.
Then something clicked.
Ye Junlin looked up and noticed a faint golden ripple in the sky, flickering just above the valley.
"Of course… it's the formation."
It hit him.
These herbs weren't naturally strong—they were being boosted.
And the one responsible? None other than the Medicine Sovereign.
"That sly old man…" Ye Junlin muttered. "He nerfed us, but juiced them up. Why?"
He tapped his chin.
If the idea was to level the playing field, fine. But enhancing the herbs this much? That went beyond fair—it was practically cheating.
The only logical conclusion?
Protection.
The old Medicine Sovereign wasn't just preserving the herbs—he was spoiling them.
Suddenly, everything made sense.
Medicine King Valley wasn't a test—it was a trap. A carefully maintained hunting ground where cultivators became toys for herbs.
No wonder nobody ever mentioned this part. Everyone who survived had probably agreed to stay quiet.
Ye Junlin chuckled under his breath.
"So that's what this is. You got rained on once and now you want to tear up everyone else's umbrella."
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